Continuous motion bag feeding, filling and releasing mechanism



Jan. 25, 1955 N. DICKEY ETAL CONTINUOUS MOTION BAG FEEDING, FILLING AND RELEASING MECHANISM 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 27, 1953 INVENTORS. M0144 3/:(4-5 Mes/ma W 544442-16,

Arraewa/ 1955 N. DICKEY ETAL commuous MOTION BAG FEEDING, FILLING AND RELEASING MECHANISM Filed April 27, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Arrazme/ United States Patent CONTINUOUS MOTION BAG FEEDING, FILLING AND RELEASING lVIECHANISM Norman Dickey and Marshall W. Sawyer, Los Angeles, Calif.; said Dickey assignor to Herman W. Wilson, Jr., Moscow, Idaho Application April 27, 1953, Serial No. 351,146

Claims. (Cl. 226-49) Our invention relates in general to automatic bag filling devices, and relates in particular to mechanism for opening the bags and placing a measured quantity of a product therein. The present invention is preferably used with an automatic bag closing and sealing mechanism, and is of such character that it may be coupled to a bag making machine from which it will receive the bags to be filled, or may be arranged to receive previously made bags from a bag feeder.

It is an object of the invention to provide a continuously rotating bag carrier having bag receiving and holding means, and an intermittent bag opening and feeding mechanism operating in timed relation to the movement of the bag receiving and holding means through a bag receiving position. An especial advantage of this arrangement is that the continuous and repeated starting and stopping of relatively heavy parts of the bag holding mechanism is avoided and the wear and destructive action upon transmission parts is minimized.

It is an object of the invention to provide a bag holding and receiving means comprising a continuously rotating turntable having downwardly projecting funnel members spaced around a circle near the periphery of the turntable, these funnel members being moved consecutively through bag receiving, bag filling and bag releasing posi tions.

A further object of the invention is to provide in conjunction with the foregoing, a bag feeding arm which reciprocates in timed relation to the movement of the funnel members into said bag receiving position, this arm having thereon bag moving means for carrying bags upwardly onto the respective funnel members as the funnel members move through the bag receiving position, there being means for eifecting a lateral movement of the bag holding end of the arm to correspond to the movement of the funnel members as the bags are being placed thereon by bag holding means disposed at the swinging end of the arm.

It is a further object of the invention to provide means for delivering unopened bags intermittently to the bag feeding arm.

A further object of the invention is to provide a simple bag gripping means of the swinging end of the bag feeding arm arranged to be controlled by an adjustable cam.

A further object of the invention is to provide a travelling nozzle arranged to deliver a blast of air to open the bags as the bag feeding mechanism carries them to the bag holding means.

A further object of the invention is to provide a simple means for clamping the bags on travelling funnel members, and a cam arranged to control the operation of the bag clamping means.

Further objects and advantages of the invention may be brought out in the following part of the specification which describes a preferred embodiment of the invention in detail, not for the purpose of limiting the invention but so as to enable others to easily comprehend the same. It is intended that the scope of the invention shall be as defined by the accompanying claims.

Referring to the drawings which are for illustrative purposes only:

Fig. l is an elevational view showing a preferred embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary view taken on the plane indicated by the line 22 of Fig. 1 showing parts which cooperate in placing and holding a bag on a funnel;

end of the bag feeding arm, to show details of the bag gripping finger.

As a bag holding means we provide a turntable 10 which is supported at the upper end of a tubular housing 11 for rotation around a vertical axis. A shaft 12 which extends through the housing 11 forms part of a drive mechanism for continuously rotating the turntable 10 in clockwise direction.

The turntable 10 comprises lower and upper circular plates 13 and 14 respectively arranged at the lower and upper ends of volumetric measurement product containers 15 having horizontally arranged gates 16 at their lower ends for controlling the flow of measured quantitles of the product downwardly from the containers 15 into funnel members 17 which project downwardly from the lower plate 13. The lower ends 18 of the funnel members 17 are cut oil? diagonally downwardly and outwardly to facilitate the placing of bags thereon, as will be hereinafter described.

Each of the gates 16 has a housing 19 of flat form in which a closure plate 20 is slidable. Springs 21 are provided for urging each closure plate 20 toward its closed position. Levers 22, hinged on vertical pins 23 are proof these levers 22 has an arm 24 for engaging an abutment in the form of a roller 25, as the turntable 10 rotates in clockwise direction so that the arms move along a circular path around the vertical axis of rotation of the turntable 10. The roller 25 is mounted on the upper end of a vertical movable pin 26 which is urged upwardly into its operative position by a spring 27. The pin 26 is slidable in a bushing 28, and the lower end thereof is connected to an armature 29 of an electrical solenoid 30. Energization of the solenoid 30 will pull the pin 26 downward against the action of the spring 27, moving the roller 25 downward out of the path of the arms 24 of the levers 22, so that at such time opening of a closure 20 will not be .eifected. Therefore, if a bag to be filled has not been ing position F, the gate opening position 0 and the bag releasing position or bag dropping position D. The abutment roller 25 is positioned so that as each container 15' moves through the position 0, the associated closure 20 will be moved into open position to fill the bag on the funnel member disposed therebelow prior to the time it' reaches the bag dropping or releasing position D. Each lever 22 is provided with a dashpot 31 to ease the closing of the associated valve by accompanying springs 21 after the end 32 of the lever 24 has moved out of engagement with the roller 25. The upper plate 14 of theturntable 10 has openings 33 therein communicating with the upper ends of the containers 15. Above the plate 14 there s a stationary plate 34 having an opening 35, in the filling position F through which the product may be passed from a product hopper 36, the lower end of which communicates with the opening 35.

Means for holding bags on the funnel member 17 comprise fulcrum levers 37 supported on the lower face of the plate 13 of the turntable by brackets 38 having horizontal h1nge pins 39. Each lever 37 has a yoke 40 supporting rubber gripper buttons 41 in such positions that they will clamp the upper portion of albag 42 against opposite sides of a funnel member 17 when the lever is swung into the position thereof indicated by ful lines 37' in Figs. 1 and 4, by spring means 43. The fulcrum levers 37 have on the inner or rearward portion.

thereof rollers 44 arranged to engage a cam 45 which Patented Jan. 25, 1955 issupported on the stationary housing 11. When-viewed from above, as in Fig. 2, the cam 45 is arcuate. It has a low front end '46 positioned so 'as to *be engaged by a roller 44 as bag dropping position D is approached. For example, as a fulcrum lever '37, indicated specifically by the numeral-37a moves leftwardl-y, "Fig. 1, from the .position 0, the roller '44 of the lever 37a will move toward the team 45 and will engage the low end 46 thereof, as shown :at 4411 in Fig. 1, with the result that :the yoke 40 of .the Ztulcrum lever 37 will be moved downwardly, releasing the bag and allowing it-to drop in the position B, into .a :suitable receiver, not shown. After the dropping of the bag, continued leftwa-rd movement will result in the roller 44a travelling leftwardly and upwardly along the cam 45 :so that 'as filtling position A is approached the lever be swung downwardly into the posit-ion indicated by dotted lines 40b. Shortly -thereafter, and after 1he bag l2 has been placedon thefunnel member 17 position F the roller drop off the high point 47 into the recession following the cam high point 47. 'Ilhespring d'a then snaps th6 0k6'40 into bag gripping position as shown in full-lines in position '-R, and the yoke remains :*in such position until ithas passed in clockwise direction to position 13.

Adjacent the bag receiving position -=R there is a support 48 carrying a lateral shaft 49 which has a gear segment 50 on one end and :a transverse pivot pin 51 on -the opposite end. TheLshaft 49 is given an oscillating movement around "its axis by a gear segment 52 which engages the gear segment 50 and is connected to the inner end of a lever 53 which is reciprocated by a crank mechanism :54 through .a connecting :rod .55. As shown in .Figs. :1 land 23, .a "tubular bag feeding arm 56 is provided, this arm .56 having .a yoke 57 atone end thereof which engages 'the ends of the pivot pin 51. Around a portion of fire .shaft 49, the support 48 carries an arcuate cam 5.8 and, ;as shown in Fig. 3, a roller 59 is supported by albrackc't 60 on the .arm 56 in a position to engage the face=62 of:the cam 58. A spring 63 continuously applies aforce 1.150 the arm :56 tending to swing it in a directing whichwill hold the roller 59 in engagement with the arcuate cam face 62. For support of the spring 53, a rigid arm .64 is extended from the end of the shaft 49 and is :bent laterally :over a portion -of the arm 56. The outer :end of the spring 63 engages the inner face of the rigid arm-64, and the .inner end of the spring 63 engages a temp 65 mounted in the arm 56.. Near :the outer end 66 of :the :arm 56 there is .a bracket 67 for supporting a le9ver 68 which extends .into the .arm 56 througha window 6 .As shown in :Fig. .6, .azplug 70 is inserted in the outer end of-thear'm56 and :is secured in place by screw means 71. Thiszplug .70 has .an axial opening 72 through which a pin 73 is extended. On the outer end of the pin 73 there is a laterally extended gripper finger 74 and on the inner endof the pin '7.3'thene isa collar '75. A spring 76 disposed between :the collar 75 and the inner end of the plug '70 yieldahly maintains the pin 73 in retracted position so .that the finger 74 will be brought into gripping irelat-ionito gripping :face '77 at the outer end of the plug .70. When the lever .68 is swung in counterclockwise direction from :the position in which it is shown in .Fig. :6, the .;pin 73 will be :forced outwardly, moving the gripping finger outwardly into spaced relation to the face 77, or into :bag receiving position. Bell crank arms 78 .and 79 are connected :to the lever .68 and rollers 80 and 281 are mounted respectively at the ends of the arms 78and 79 {for engagement with cams to effect operation of the lever 68 and consequent opening and closing of the gripping Efinger 74.

The ;arm 56 .is adapted to swing from a downwardly extending gPOSltlOIl such as that in which it is shown in full lines in Fig. :1 upwardly into the position thereof shown by dotted. lines :516a above the funnel 17 in the receiving position R. A bag delivery member 82 is provided, consisting of a downwardly :sloping shute 83 on which .the closed bags are placed with the mouth ends thereof facing downwardly. iEach bag will slide down the .shute 83 to engage stop fingers 84 which are mounted on an arm :85 .swingable on a transverse pin 86. The lever :85 has thereon a cam follower 87 to engage 'a'cam 88 'which -is rotated in atimed relation to "the operation of the crank'mechanism 54, thereby effecting raising and lowering of sstop fingers 84. In Fig. l a bag 42 is shown in the'shute 83 with the mouth end thereof rest- 4. ing against the stop fingers 84. The lower end 6611f the arm 56 is shown approaching bag grrpplng position,

A and with the bag gripping finger 74 thereof lowered or in opened position accomplished by the engagement of the roller 80 with a cam 89which is supported by a pin 90 carried by a bracket 91 at the lower end of the bag delivery mechanism 82. The cam 89 is in the form of a lever held against an adjustable stop 92 by a spring 93. The .cam 89 has a diagonal approaching ;face 194, a fiat end face .95 .and a receding face 96..

As the lower end 66 of the lever 56 moves leftwardlyctoward sthe position in which it is shown in Fig. l, the roller 8%) engages the approaching face 94 of the cam 89 and rides up on to the end face 95. The arm 78 is swung in counterclockwise direction and the lever 68, Fig. 6, is swung downwardly so as "to "move the finger 74 downwardly into a position below the lip of the bag 42f, Fig. 1. Then, continued leftward movement of the lower end 66 of the arm 56 will cause the finger 74 to pass acrossthe lower face of .the lip 'of the bag 42 and will cause .the roller to pass .leftwardly off from the flat face 95 of the cam 89. The roller 80 will then move upwardly against the face :96 -of the cam 89, swinging the .cam :89 rightwardly as shown in 'Fig. 4, and permitting the arm .78 to swing upwardly :so that the lever 68 will likewise move upwardly and permit the spring 7.6 to raise the finger 74 to bag gripping position. At this time rotation of the cam 88 'wil permit the lever 85 .to drop, moving the stop fingers 84 into retracted position. .As the lower end of the arm 56 then swings rightwardly, the roller :80 will be moved from the position in which it is shown :in full lines in Fig. 4 through the position thereof indicated by dotted lines 80a, swinging the cam 89 through .the dotted line position 891). Further rightward movement of the roller, from the position 80a thereof, will free the cam :89 so that the ipri-nglg 9.3 will return it to its initial position shown in As shown in Figs. 1 and 6, there is at the outer end of the arm 56 a transversely .and rearwardly extending bag support .97, and oppositely from the bag support 97 there is a plate structure 98 incorporating an air nozzle 99 to direct a blast of air, as indicated by arrows 100 .to open the mouth of a bag, indicated by dotted lines 42g, a lip portion of which bag has been gripped by the gripping finger 74. 'From the .inlet end of the nozzle 99 a rigid air tube 101 extends inwardly along the arm and, .as fShOWl'l in Fig. l 'is connected to a flexible tube arranged to extend to a tube 103 which has connection with .a valve controlled air .source.

From the positions thereof indicated in Figs. 1 and .3, the lever 56 swings zupwardly :through the dotted-line position 56b to the position :56a carrying the bag through the intermediate position indicated by dotted lines 42h. As the outer end of the arm 56b passes the lower end of the t-funnel member 17, the :funnel member enters the mouth of the bag and continued upward .movement of the arm 56 moves the bag upward on the funnel member {to the position indicated at 42, at which time the clamping yoke 40 is swung upwardly from the retracted position 40b. Thereafter, upward movement of the lever 56 into the position 56a results in the gripping finger 74 being pulled off from the lip of the bag 42. If the bag is made of quite Ifragile material, the finger releasing means 104 of :the invention is employed so that danger of tearing the lip of the bag is avoided. This finger releasing means 104 comprises an adjustable cam 105 supported .on .the end of an adjustable lever 106. When the bag 42 is moved upwardly into the position in which it is shown on the funnel members 17, the roller '81 on the arm 79 engages the cam or stop 105, resulting in relative counterclockwise .movement of the arm 79 and the ,lever 68 to force the .pin 73 outwardly, thereby releasing the gripping finger 74 so that it may move freely upwardly away from the lip of the bag 42.

During the time the bag 42 is being placed on the funnel members 17 in the receiving position R, such funnel member is moving in clockwise direction around the axis of the turntable 10. The invention provides means for effecting a lateral or horizontal movement of the outer end of the arm .56 to correspond to the lateral movement of the funnel members 117 in the bag receiving position R. Such means consists of the cam 58 which has at its :npper enda receding portion 106a, shown in 'Fig. .3, lOVEl' which the roller 59 travels, permitting the spring 63 to swing the arm 56 in counterclockwise direction from the position in which it is shown in Fig. 3 as the outer end of the arm 56 moves from the position contiguous to the lower end of the funnel member 17 to the position 56a.

The device shown in Fig. 1 has a power shaft 107 arranged to be driven from a suitable power shaft through gearing 108. This power shaft 107 drives the shaft 12 of the turntable through a bevel gear set 109 having a four to one speed ratio, in the present instance. The shaft 107 drives the crank mechanism 54 in such timed relation to the rotation of the turntable 10 that the outer end of the arm 56 will move upwardly past each funnel member 17, in bag installing relation thereto, as each funnel member 17 moves through receiving position R.

Since there are four of the funnel members 17 on the turntable 10 there will be four operations of the arm 56 to each rotation of the turntable 10. Likewise, the shaft 107 will rotate the cam 88 through a chain and sprocket drive connection 110 in timed relation to the swinging movement of the arm 56.

We claim:

1. In bag opening and filling means: bag holding means including a funnel member arranged to extend into the mouth of a bag; turntable mechanism operative to move said bag holding means through receiving, filling and releasing positions; filling means for delivering a quantity of a product through said funnel member into the bag when it is in said filling position; means in said releasing position operating to release said bag from said bag holding means; a support adjacent said turntable mechanism; and bag feeding means comprising an arm pivotally connected to said support so as to be swung upwardly from a lowered position to a raised position wherein the outer end of said arm is adjacent said receiving position, a bag gripping finger at the outer end of said arm for carrying a bag upward into said receiving position, means for actuating said bag gripping finger, means operating to swing said arm in such timed relation to the movement of said funnel member through said receiving position that said bag and said funnel member will be moved coincidentally into said receiving position so that the mouth of said bag will be placed on said funnel member, cam means for effecting a lateral movement of the outer end of said arm as it moves into raised position, to obtain operative alignment of the bag mouth with said funnel member, and means for directing a flow of air into the mouth of the bag to open the same so that it will move readily onto said funnel member.

2. In bag opening and filling means: bag holding 1 means including a funnel member arranged to extend into the mouth of a bag; turntable mechanism operative to move said bag holding means through receiving, filling and releasing positions; filling means for delivering a quantity of a product through said funnel member into the bag when it is in said filling position; means in said releasing position operating to release said bag from said bag holding means; a support adjacent said turntable mechanism; and bag feeding means comprising an arm pivotally connected to said support so as to be swung upwardly from a lowered position to a raised position wherein the outer end of said arm is adjacent said receiving position, a bag gripping finger at the outer end of said arm for carrying a bag upward into said receiving position, means for actuating said bag gripping finger, means operating to swing said arm in such timed relation to the movement of said funnel mem-' her through said receiving position that said bag and said funnel member will be moved coincidentally into said receiving position so that the mouth of said bag will be placed on said funnel member, and cam means for eifecting a lateral movement of the outer end of said arm as it moves into raised position, to obtain operative alignment of the bag mouth with said funnel member, as the mouth of the bag moves onto said funnel member.

3. In bag opening and filling means: bag holding means including a funnel member arranged to extend into the mouth of a bag; turntable mechanism operative to move said bag holding means through receiving, filling and releasing positions; filling means for delivering a quantity of a product through said funnel member into the bag when it is in said filling position; means in said releasing position operating to release said bag from said bag holding means; a support adjacent said turntable mechanism; and bag feeding means comprising an arm pivotally connected to said support so as to be swung upwardly from a lowered position to a raised position wherein the outer end of said arm is adjacent said receiving position, a bag gripping finger at the outer end of said arm for carrying a bag upward into said receiving position, means for actuating said bag gripping finger, means operating to swing said arm in such timed relation to the movement of said funnel member through said reeciving position that said bag and said funnel member will be moved coincidentally into said receiving position so that the mouth of said bag will be placed on said funnel member, and means for effecting a lateral movement of the outer end of said arm as it moves into raised position, to obtain operative alignment of the bag mouth with said funnel member, as the mouth of the bag moves onto said funnel member.

4. In bag opening and filling means: bag holding means including a funnel member arranged to extend into the mouth of a bag; turntable mechanism operative to move said bag holding means through receiving, filling and releasing positions; filling means for delivering a quantity of a product through said funnel member into the bag when it is in said filling position; means in said releasing position operating to release said bag from said bag holding means; a support adjacent said turntable mechanism; and bag feeding means comprising an arm pivotally connected to said support so as to be swung upwardly from a lowered position to a raised position wherein the outer end of said arm is adjacent said receiving position, bag gripping means at the outer end of said arm for carrying a bag upwardly into said receiving position, cam and follower means in the lower position of said arm for actuating said bag gripping means, means operating to swing said arm in such timed relation to the movement of said funnel member through said receiving position that said bag and said funnel member will be moved coincidentally into said receiving position so that the mouth of said bag will be placed on said funnel member, and means for effecting a lateral movement of the outer end of siad arm as it moves into raised position, to obtain operative alignment of the bag mouth with said funnel member, as the mouth of the bag moves onto said funnel member.

5. In bag opening and filling means: bag holding means including a funnel member arranged to extend into the mouth of a bag; turntable mechanism operative to move said bag holding means through receiving, filling and releasing positions; filling means for delivering a quantity of a product through said funnel member into the bag when it is in said filling position; means in said releasing position operating to release said bag from said bag holding means; a support adjacent said turntable mechanism; and bag feeding means comprising a shaft member arranged on said support for rotation on a horizontal axis, an arm extending from said shaft member and having its inner end connected to said shaft member by a hinge arranged transversely of said shaft member, means for oscillating said shaft member so that it will swing said arm in timed relation to the movement of said funnel member through said receiving position from a lowered position to a raised position wherein the outer end of said arm will be adjacent said receiving position, bag gripping means at the outer end of said arm for carrying a bag upwardly into said receiving position, and an arcuate cam arranged along the path of movement of a portion of said arm for effecting a lateral movement of the outer end of said arm as it moves into raised position to obtain operative alignment of the bag mouth with the funnel member as the mouth of the bag moves onto the funnel member.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 977,632 Hoyt Dec. 6, 1910 1,868,048 Day et a1 July 19, 1932 2,022,867 Middleboe et a1. Dec. 3, 1935 2,234,951 Belcher Mar. 18, 1941 2,630,954 Carter et al Mar. 10, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS 194,281 Germany Jan. 16, 1908 

